Red
by The Angry Lioness MOVED
Summary: Ariadne turns to Arthur for the most unexpected problem to find herself responsible in rescuing him from Cobol Engineering.


Miles stepped into his idyllic Paris home, holding a silver briefcase. The rest of the neighborhood was in deep slumber. He felt as if any small sound would put someone on full alert. The elder professor was doing some illegal business for the sake of a friend, and it had nothing to do with dreams.

He was carrying blood. She even said specifically that she could not drink from a corpse, or she'd get sick. So he chloroformed a man walking on the streets alone, dragged him into the alley and drew a pint of blood from his arm. He used his PASIV to extract the blood like a mosquito would.

When he was put to this job, he had to add another tube that was thicker and worked as a nozzle. Miles was all against it, but he felt even worse for the woman he did it for. Every time she went to hunt, she'd accidentally kill her donors. Headlines were making her nervous for she feared exposure. No, she couldn't speak of it in public to strangers.

"What took you so long?" A low but feminine voice sneered.

"My apologies." Said Miles asking for pardon. "There was no one out alone except one other person."

"Did you kill them?" her once brown eyes would turn yellow like an owl when she was hungry or when she smelled blood.

"No." Miles opened the case and brought out the nozzle, filling the glass she had waiting empty. She snatched it the moment it became full and gulped it all down.

"Ah… you got AB positive." She licked the rest of it off her upper lip. "I wish I knew who this man was."

"Do you need anything else?" he asked.

What she wanted was freedom from immortality. And no one could give it to her. He saw her crying again. Her arms hugged her shins as she hid her face in her lap. Tears of blood stained her jeans. Miles carefully approached her.

She looked harmless curled up in a ball. Even though she was a baby, touching her was playing with fire. One time, a priest tried to offer her sympathy; she ripped her teeth into his throat guiltlessly and left him sprawled in front of a Virgin Mary statue.

"Ariadne…" his voice was almost quiet. "You need to tell me who did this to you. It's the first step." Miles had been insisting that on her for a while.

"What difference does it make?" she cried, irritated that he brought it back up. "He's my maker, I can't kill him! He knows where I am at all times! For all I know, he could be older than you."

Miles sighed, frustrated with her aggression. "I can't help you then."

"Who could?" she snapped, her face rising up from the dark. "Even a point man couldn't help me! I'd need another vampire but I only know one and I hate him!"

Miles fearlessly sat beside her on the sofa and brought her head under his.

"Come now. We'll think of something." He rocked her gently the way he did with his granddaughter. "You know, I think Arthur's in town. Would a visit make you feel better?"

Ariadne wiped some blood from under her eye. "I haven't seen Arthur in two years."

"That won't matter, he never changed." Miles assured. "I'm going to call him tomorrow and arrange a time for you to visit him."

"Will he want to see me come after sunset?"

Miles smiled. "He says great things about you. He says he wishes you could do more jobs with him. You're his favorite architect."

"That's nice to know." But what would he say, or do, when Ariadne told him about the v-word? There would be questions, the vein in his neck would smell like a steak, either she bit him or went home. She was hoping for sure that he wouldn't get a paper-cut or have an open wound. Ariadne didn't have to worry about periods either, unless Eames was right.

At daytime, she used to work for an architecture company. After her turning, she was forced to quit. The umbrella idea didn't work as she hoped, so she had no choice. The sun was her new enemy. Just weeks ago, they were best friends. Now, she remained hidden in a windowless basement.

It was like an underground apartment with everything but the bathroom and kitchen. There she would watch TV, read, play with Legos or sleep. In the summer, she had to stay down there for longer. Ariadne assumed little kids had to sleep less.

The next day was probably the most boring. She anticipated seeing Arthur again causing the clock to tick slower. She watched ten roller derby bouts before Miles came down.

"It's safe now."

She was already in a grey jacket and tight jeans, her hair brushed and sprayed.

"Why can't he come here?"

"I thought you'd want to get out of the house. I brought you some dinner also, in case you have plans to attack him."

"I respect him too much to eat him." Ariadne rolled her eyes, swearing on her endless life. "Besides, he'd taste too rich."

The drive was relatively short. As Miles stopped at lights and made turns, Ariadne looked at the scenery. For moments, seeing the Eiffel Tower made her a little hopeful. Hopeful for human life again.

Miles pulled into a private garage and set his car in someone's spot as Ariadne finished the blood in her water bottle. "I'm just going to take you to his door and go." He said. "I don't want to make anything awkward."

Ariadne nodded in agreement. "Thank you Miles… for everything. You're risking so much for me and there's nothing I can give you back… I'm sorry."

"You don't have to be." He was still glad to have her around. "I hope talking with Arthur will make things a little better."

They rode an elevator to the highest floor. Ariadne felt like she was walking to the therapist for the first time. Miles escorted her to apartment thirty-three and knocked on the door. His alumni took a pair of sunglasses out of her pocket and placed them over her eyes.

"No need to wear those." Miles told her.

"Believe me, I do."

The black door made no sound as the lock wound opened. Standing between two nice plants was the man himself, exactly as she remembered. Neither of them aged.

"I'm so happy you're in town." Miles began. "Ariadne has been having some issues and thinks that even you can't help her."

"What kind of issues?" Arthur asked. "Is someone following you?"

"Invite her in and she'll explain everything." Miles pulled down the hood from Ariadne's face. "I'm sorry it had to be so late. You'll understand soon."

Ariadne was quiet as she awaited Arthurs invitation.

"Please, come in Ariadne." Arthur wasn't hesitant even after hearing the few hints from Miles.

"Call me when you're finished." Miles told her. "Even if it's four in the morning."

"Don't worry about it Miles. I'll take her home." Arthur insisted modestly. "Get your sleep."

Miles nodded. "Thank you Arthur." Ariadne stepped through the doorway, almost afraid that it had a force field in it. "You're a true gentleman."

"No worries." Arthur nodded. Miles turned away to leave them but revolved his body back around.

"You better put some silver on you." He warned. "Just to be safe."

Arthur looked over at Ariadne who sighed. "Bye Miles." She growled. "Good night."

"Good morning." Miles walked off and stepped into the elevator.

For the first time in two years, Ariadne was alone with him. She never expected to see him or any of the men again. The inception was a one-time job that changed her forever. She missed the thrills that came with the job while the rest of the men, minus Cobb, kept working. Arthur hired a different architect, making her feel a little offended.

"You look different." He said. "You seem depressed."

"That's part of the issue." She started. "It's going to be so hard to explain all of this."

"Whatever it is Ariadne, I can do something." He offered. "Can I get you some coffee?"

"No." she rejected the caffeine idea, which she never would as a human. When she tried coffee after her turning, she grew very sick. It reacted in her stomach the same way a pesticide would. "Arthur…" Ariadne had no idea what to say next, so she took a seat on one of the sofas.

"Is someone following you?" he guessed.

"No. In fact, the last guy who stalked me… ended up dead."

Arthur rose his eyebrows and sat next to her.

"How did you kill him?"

Ariadne was quiet, her thoughts running wild. She looked down at the floor to avoid looking at him. As calm a man as Arthur could be, she still feared for the worst.

"I fed on him…"

Obviously, the point man was not moved. Ariadne stood up and walked towards the mirror. She could see Arthur turning his head to eye her. She could sense his concern like the aroma of freshly baked cookies.

"How can I have no reflection in this mirror except for my clothes?" she started. In the mirror, she looked like the Invisible Man. She could only see the jacket and jeans. "It's just a regular mirror. It's not a mirror you'd see in a dream." Neither of them could see a duplicate of her flesh behind the glass. Arthur watched as the two grey sleeves reached up to her eyes, fiddling with the zipper like a poltergeist.

She faced the other way, her iris's currently brown for the while. Ariadne could see Arthur was speechless. He was reaching for his totem, rolling it six times in a row. All six attempts landed on two. As he put the die back in his pocket, he was startled to see Ariadne sitting next to him. The point man nearly fell off his seat.

"Jesus Ariadne, don't do that!"

"Now do you believe me?" she quizzed challenging his fuse.

"Yes… I just never imagined that-"

"Vampires existed? Neither did I." she stopped him rudely.

"How did this happen?" Arthur asked. "It doesn't matter how long the story is, I want every detail you remember."

Ariadne leaned into the leathery cushions of his pricy furniture. "When something is so traumatizing, it's impossible to forget."

* * *

><p>Walking home at night alone wasn't always the best idea. But neither was letting a drunk friend offer one a ride. Ariadne had just walked out of a casual and rowdy party. It might have been two when she was done. It was a friends birthday, and Ariadne decided to go since she was finally free.<p>

She had a few drinks and a couple of shots, before waiting a few hours. When the buzzing left her head, a drunk pal was offering rides. She declined and said goodbye to the host.

Her apartment was only a few blocks down, so she started to fasten her pace. In the chill, she hugged herself for warmth. As she paced, she looked up at the moon.

Little did she know that she was being watched.

He originated from an alley, appearing as a human with black hair and tan skin. His wide yellow eyes looked onto her like a lion gazing at a gazelle. Slowly, the lion slinked closer. He was silent as a mime.

Ariadnes cell phone started going off. She stopped to open the text message she got. As she typed a respond, he made his move. The moment she hit 'send', he lashed for her. His hand clamped over her mouth. The other one grabbed her phone and crushed it with its fist.

She screamed through his bones and tried to implant her feet into the cement. Shaking her shoulders in desperation, all escape efforts were meaningless.

"Relax Sweetheart." He whispered, his sweet breath running through her ear and into her spine. "I'm not going to do what you think I'm going to do."

Ariadne continued with the little energy she had to grab attention or get away somehow as he dropped the broken phone and brought his hand to her neck. His fingers worked in a way that forced her into unconsciousness.

A few moments later, she awoke to be by herself in a strange place. The stone walls looked like they were leaking, water was dripping from the ceiling in random locations and the only sources of light were candles. The bed she was put in was a king size be with scarlet blankets and gold curtains. As she sat up to get off, her body bounced back after hearing a few little squeaks.

There were rats. Red eyed rats everywhere, blocking all hopes of getting up. She wasn't sure to scream or not in fear of being infected.

"They won't hurt you." His shadowy silhouette stood tall at the doorway. Ariadne tried to get a good look at his face but all his features were clouded. "That is, if you don't run."

Ariadne threw the blankets off her. "Who are you and where did you take me?"

The man chuckled and proceeded forward. She was expecting someone much bulkier than the tall, thin person. His skin was a medium tone indicating that he must have been Middle Eastern. The amount of black hair on his head and his stubble seemed to give him away.

"Your in one of the basements of an ancient opera house." He told her. "One thousand feet underground."

"What is going on?" she snapped fearfully. "What do you want?"

The man seemed to fast forward like the Flash over her frail body. His arms blocked her from sitting up. Nerves in her body began moving ten times faster than light, but still unable to escape black holes.

"Congratulations Ariadne." His voice slithered. "You're the lucky girl I'm going to turn."

"Turn?" she was confused. Maybe this man was confused himself.

"Ever wondered what it's like to be a vampire?" His fangs popped out like two little pocket knives, his eyes going from black coffee to owl yellow.

She had to be having a nightmare. There was no other rational explanation she could come up with. "Oh my God, please wake me up!" Transparent tears blobbed over her eyes. Ariadne really believed she was put under. "Please!"

The vampire gripped one of her shoulders and forced it down. Ariadne screamed as his other fist yanked her hair back. "Say goodbye to sunlight and say hello to darkness." His voice was taunting her conflicting emotions.

"Help!" She called out as loudly as possible. "Someone-"

Right when the teeth drilled through her skin, Ariadne found that screaming would halt her heartbeat. This man didn't take a tiny bit of blood but she felt him taking out so much that she was about to go into shock.

He finally released her, gently placing her head on the pillow. All pulses were slowing down and stopping like cars losing gas. Her body was a factory and there was a major power outage. Every organ started to go psychotic.

Ariadne prayed that God would take her soul before this monster could. She stopped trying to breathe, imagining Heaven a mile away. The vampire himself tore his wrist open, his and her blood mixed together to finish the process.

She was seeing her life go by. Old memories played in her mind like a movie. Words she couldn't forget echoed in her head. She was moving faster towards the end. Suddenly, the ride stopped. And then it started to go backwards.

It was too late. He had fed her his blood before she died, and that caused all the factory machines to get back up, running stronger than ever. Now those machines were indestructible.

"Die young or be young forever." He mocked, laughing like the mad man he was.

Her eyes opened to see him taking the sheets off the bed. The eyes now were more than windows to the soul; they were weapons.

* * *

><p>"He told me that if I stepped into the sun, that would be the end." Arthur passed her a tissue to mainly prevent having any bloodstains. Ariadne wiped the juice from her eye. "I've tried everything. I've slit my throat, I've stabbed myself, I've shot myself in the throat… nothing. And when I tried to use silver or wood or go outside, he would sense it and stop me."<p>

"How long have you been like this?" Arthur asked.

"Three months. That's three months too many."

"So let me ask you about the myths." Arthur continued. "What about crosses and churches?"

"Crosses and churches have no effect on me, because God doesn't exist." She looked at him with brief disappointment. "You can say I'm an atheist now."

"You think that proves he's not real?" Arthur questioned.

"Arthur, I would be dead by now. I stepped into many churches hoping that I'd turn to dust or something. Nothing."

"What about coffins? Do you have one?"

"Yes, I do have one. I'm still not used to it."

"And steaks."

"Only wood and silver… which reminds me, do you have any of that?"

Arthur sighed. "Now tell me about blood."

"Blood is like water. I need a lot of it everyday." She said. "I have trouble not killing my donors. They always struggle like animals and ask to die."

"So I assume you vampires don't know how to hypnotize people then. Because you would have persuaded them to calm down."

Ariadne looked over at him. "My maker calls it 'glamouring' and it takes a whole bodies worth of blood to work." She explained. "I haven't mastered it because well… I don't want to practice it. I want nothing to do with his games."

"And who would that be?"

Ariadne shook her head in sadness. "If only I knew. But unless that machine gun of yours is filled with silver or wooden bullets, coming near him will get you killed."

Arthur was once again back to his totem as if it was out of order. He looked around to be sure Ariadne wouldn't sneak up on him again and threw the game piece. The same results were brought to his attention.

"What about flying and forging?"

"Only shifters can do that. I don't even know if they exist. Maybe." Ariadne stood up and walked over to the window. In her view was the Eiffel Tower, lit to life like a children's carnival. Below her were small dots of people making their ways through the city. "You humans have no idea how lucky you are. You get to lay in the sun, eat chocolate, grow old… have children."

Arthur eyebrows knitted together. "You can't have children?"

A bloody tear snuck out of her left eye just thinking about her.

"My second dream next to being an architect was to be a mother to a girl named Alice. She was going to have an _Alice in Wonderland_ nursery and grow up among her family. I could see her so clearly." A ball formed in her throat. "It's like now I'm seeing her in a casket as they put her in the grave."

The point man stood up and closed the curtains around the window, attempting to lure her away. He didn't want to touch her because now, instead of him easily being able to kill her, she was easily able to rip his organs out. Ariadne looked over at him and journeyed to the window fifteen feet away.

"I want to help." He threw himself to his knees in her mind as he followed her.

"I don't even think that briefcase can allow me to dream." Ariadne believed negatively. "Besides, why would you want to help me after all I told you?"

"When you came in here, you looked just the way I last saw you." He explained. You have no tattoos or crazy body manipulations, crazy clothing changes or glowing eyes. And then you told me what I never believed. And you're still the same after that." Arthur bravely took a grasp to her shoulder like a lion tamer. When Ariadne didn't pounce back and try to eat him, he continued. "And after that inception… I couldn't stop thinking about you."

She felt his skin through the fabric of her jacket like a magic healers. He could have meant many things by 'you' including the things she would be disappointed to hear.

"About the dreams or me?"

"You."

That made the magic coming out of his hand blast down her spine. She looked into his eyes, hers managing to remain espresso. Right then, their puzzle pieces were fitting perfectly.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you." Her feelings were soaring through the air. She just hoped he didn't shoot them down. But then she could have eaten him. Maybe he wouldn't taste so rich. "I mean, you surprised me when you told me to kiss you and I had a harder time working."

Arthur took a strand of mahogany hair around his fingers and rubbed his thumb over it. "You caused me to lose focus. That's why I didn't hire you again. You are the best I've seen but I can't risk putting you trough all that trouble again."

"How many women do you say that to?" Ariadne let that hand shift to her cheek. Her porcelain skin was not bitter like he guessed. That hand spread over her cheek.

"Just one."

That was all he whispered before gently sealing his thin lips over hers. The memory of them in the second dream level came in mind. But this kiss was nothing like it. Ariadne held him so closely that the thinnest knife on Earth couldn't stay between their chests.

There was nobody to fool right then as he felt her breath on his tongue. He swore he expected to suck in blood breath. It tasted sweeter, like boiling syrup. Arthur felt her lips trying to kiss more effortful than his as her hands made it down to his chest.

She was afraid; afraid she would hurt him. Ariadnes fangs could have cropped out at any moment, piercing his lower lip. Even though she was supposed to cherish the rare moment, any accident could ruin it.

She felt herself inside like a transforming werewolf. Her small hands gripped the baby blue fabric of his shirt. Like a werewolf, she tore it right off him leaving his chest naked.

They found themselves in his bedroom moments later. The two were instantly addicted to each other like cookies and milk. Arthur placed her down on the bed gently like the Phantom would carry Christine. He made out with her as if he couldn't breathe and needed her sweet breath to live. As Ariadne reacted to every kiss, he reached for the zipper of her jacket and pulled out down, revealing a striped buttoned shirt. Ariadne started unfastening buttons from the bottom as he neatly undid the ones at the top.

The shirt and jacket were thrown to the carpet carelessly. When it was Ariadnes turn, she eagerly unzipped his pants. She expected him to stop and go fold them before resuming their game but instead, Arthur let her kick his pants aside.

His lips moved from hers down to her neck. That's when she could really smell him. Ariadne didn't know if that wonderful aroma was his blood or his cologne. Arthur unbuttoned her pants and Ariadne assisted him by swinging her legs until they were gone.

She looked at him who was completely naked except for a pair of Hanes boxers. He looked down at her, his hands now crawling to her hips. Arthurs thumbs snuck into the sides of her black panties and gently brought them down.

Ariadne yanked her matching bra off and dashed for his underwear. She jerked them off to see his penis, already having a horny erection.

"Do you really wanna do this?" she asked.

"Do you?"

"Yes." A smile then grew on her face. "Fuck me human!"

Arthur leapt on top of her, locking her in his arms. His dick jammed inside her like a pencil being sharpened. The bed below them began shaking like a hurricane was in the room.

"Yes!" Ariadne roared victoriously. "Yes, go on! Fuck me harder!" Her legs locked around his waist like a leather belt. Both of them moaned as they rolled over and switched positions.

With Ariadne on the top, she got to ride him like a kids quarter pony in front of a grocery store.

"Damn!" Arthur breathed deeply each time her twat grabbed him. Now the smell of his blood was spreading like a gas leak.

She had to taste his blood. It was already a solid fact that it would be the gold metal winner of all she drank. Ariadnes body lowered to plank over his, her twat still around his dick. Her fangs came out, the smell now irresistible.

Arthur had little warning. When her fangs jumped into his skin, he felt like an apple being eaten just for the juice. Slowly, he lost his Hercules strength.

It was just right. Some blood was too sweet and a lot of donors had salty blood. But Arthur's was perfect. He was the right age, scent, and blood type for her. She had swallowed his blood twenty times until finally pulling out. Despite the perfection, Ariadne had to make sure he was still alive.

Both of them were too distracted to notice that someone was looking through Arthurs bedroom window. The face she had the displeasure of knowing peered through the panes at the couple. The phone in his hand was ringing.

"You better have something important to tell me." The man on the other line sneered.

"Yes Mr. Cobal. I just called to inform you that I found our point man."

* * *

><p><strong>A Note to Readers:<strong>

**This story is intended for entertainment purposes only. Adding vampires to _Inception_ in real life will fuck it up permanently, even if they don't sparkle.**


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